Rostrum July 2012

also planning for the annual CANstruction build

and gala. The competition

will be held again at the L i v i n g s t o n Ma l l i n

September with a “Back to School” theme. This is a

great team bui lding experience for any office

and all cans go to support

the NJ Community Food Bank. The CANstruction

event has historically been the largest donation of

food the Food Bank

receives throughout the year. In these difficult

times we cannot let them down! Information on

signing up for the compet i t ion i s a lso

available at our website.

Kevin McCormick, AIA, LEED®AP AIANS President,

2012

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Rostrum 2012

AIA Newark and Suburban Architects A Section of AIA New Jersey

AIA New Jersey is a Chapter and Region of the American Institute of Architects

JULY 2012

Issue 7

The Rostrum

Official newsletter of the

Newark & Suburban

Section of AIA-NJ

Published monthly

Submit events, case

studies, photos, comments,

or other content for

consideration to:

[email protected]

President’s Message 1

It’s the Economy - Still 2

Dessert Build

3

Design Awards 2012 4

Building Tour 5

Inside this issue: him in his new position.

The summer is upon us

and I hope you can take

time to enjoy it. I encourage everyone to

come to our Golf Outing on July 23rd. If you are not a

golfer, please come join us for the cocktail reception

and dinner following the

outing. Your participation supports a great group –

1st Cerebral Palsy of NJ.

Newark and Suburban is

working hard this summer

planning for events early this fall. The Building Tour

Committee has a trip planned for September

15th to Kykiut in Sleepy Hollow, NY - detailed

information on the trip is

available at our website and on page 5. We are

In June we held our 4th genera l meet ing in

conjunction with Architect’s

League at the Montclair Art Museum. Thanks to all

those that fought the heat that night and came out to

enjoy the film “Romanza” by Michael Miner about the

work of Frank Lloyd Wright

in California. It was a fun night to for me to see old

friends from school and former colleagues from our

neighboring section. It

was a special night also because Newark &

Suburban and Architect’s League had the opportunity

to together say goodbye to a true friend of the

architectural community -

Ellen Harmon. Ellen is retiring after 23 years as

a n a r c h i t e c t u r a l representative at Pella. I

wish Ellen well and hope

she enjoys her retirement and her new venture as a

grandmother!

Ellen will also be stepping

down as a member of the

Newark and Suburban Board of Trustees. I am

happy to announce that Bill Munoz with USG has

agreed to take the Trustee position. The Newark and

Suburban Board wishes Bill

a warm welcome and looks forward to working with

Rostrum 2012 Issue 7

Page 2

AIA Newark & Suburban

Board Members

Officers

KEVIN McCORMICK, AIA

President

LOUISE ADDONIZIO, AIA

President-Elect

JOHN A. CWIKLA, AIA

First Vice President

LISA SAN FILIPPO, AIA

Secretary

STEPHEN ROONEY, AIA

Treasurer

YOGESH MISTRY, AIA

Past President

Trustees

Trustee 2012

JUDY DONNELLY, AIA

Trustees 2013

CHRISTY DIBARTOLO, AIA

ALEX GOTTHELF,AIA

BILL MUNOZ, ALLIED

MEMBER

NATASHA SUZANSKY, AIA

Trustees 2014

PAUL TIAJOLOFF, AIA

RONALD WESTON, AIA

JASON PEIST, ASSOC. AIA

Honorary Affiliate

DAN BISCHOFF

Section Administrator

JULIE PAGNOTTA

[email protected]

AIA NS 2012 Committees

Professional Practice Notes: It’s The Economy…Still increased.

Not all firms experience the lingering macro economic

slump, and for some the inquiries and billings are

edging upward despite the broader statistics. Based on

the first quarter uptick, even with the recent second

quarter headwinds, a modest

recovery in 2012 is still likely followed by a stronger

upturn in 2013. Overall, nonresidential construction

spending has been forecast to increase by more than 6

percent next year, again with stronger numbers on the

commercial and industrial

side.

Architects in practice cannot

alter the state of the economy, which is an

externality outside of ones

control. However, architects can continue to hone their

technical skills and sharpen bus iness management

methods to survive the weak economy a little longer, and

position their practices to thrive again when (not if)

more work returns to the

industry.

So it is the economy on

which much of professional practice success hinges and I

believe it is wise to

understand the state of the economy at a macro level to

ge t the 30 , 000 - foo t perspective and advocate for

policies that can improve the building sector. Even more

importantly, it is imperative that architects take steps to

improve their position in the

micro economy where they practice.

AIA NS Professional Practice Committee Chair: Ronald C. Weston, AIA, LEED AP BD+C Email: [email protected]

Twenty years and two recessions ago, Bill Clinton’s

successful presidentia l campaign made famous the

phrase “It’s the economy,

stupid.” Midway through 2012, in the midst of another

presidential campaign, it’s the economy…still…that is

making headlines and causing havoc for many

businesses and individuals.

Architecture practices are cyclical by nature, tied in

large part to the ups and downs of employment and

real estate markets. While economists declared the

“Great Recession” to have

ended many quarters ago, the recovery is so faint that

architects are still navigating through a depressed design

and construction market. It is clear that this cycle is much

deeper and longer than any since the Great Depression;

even veterans of multiple

recessions are not used to the prolonged economic

weakness we are living through. In addition to the

cyclical factors that are depressing the building

sector, some economists note that demographic and

structural changes are

altering “normal” patterns of development.

On June 20th the AIA reported that following the

first negative reading in five

months, the Architecture

Billings Index (ABI) has had a significant drop in May.

May’s ABI score was 45.8, following a mark of 48.4 in

April. This score reflects a

sharp decrease in demand for design services (any

score above 50 indicates an increase in billings).

AIA Chief Economist, Kermit

Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA said, “For the second year in a

row, we’re seeing declines in springtime design activity

after a healthy first quarter. G i v e n t h e o n g o i n g

uncertainly in the economic outlook, particularly the

weak job growth numbers in

recent months, this should be an alarm bell going off for

the design and construction industry.” Baker went on to

say, “The commercial/industrial sector is the only

one recording gains in design activity at present, and even

this sector has slowed

significantly. Construction forecasters will have to

reassess what conditions will look like moving forward.”

The recent April and May ABI

setback is concerning, since the housing market had been

moving into recovery, with business conditions at

residential architecture firms improving for the first

quarter of 2012; more than one third of participating

residential firms reported

that their billings had

Rostrum 2012 Issue 7

Page 3 Dessert/Build Challenge 2012

“If the North Pole went Green”

www.aians.org/dessertbuild

Tentative Date: Saturday, December 1, 2012.

Location: To be announced

Dessert/Build is a challenge for design professionals to create and construct a sustainable

“Gingerbread” house to be judged for “FEED” certification. It will be held during the holiday

season and guests are encouraged to bring a toy for “Toys for Tots”.

Every building has an impact on the environment;

it is important to make sure that these constructs create little to no negative impact on the

environment. Each team or person will design a unique solution to the problem: What if the North Pole went ‘Green’.

This is a conceptual competition for sustainability design; pastry skills are not required. In fact,

the builds only need to meet the at-least-50%-edible requirement as outlined in the “FEED” scorecard. The only other requirements are that a build must include both a building and a site

which does not exceed 24” x 24” and that participants under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a guardian.

The goal of this challenge is to not only raise money for charity, but to also educate people

about the environment. This event will promote an open discussion about architecture and sustainability through the use of physical modeling. Also, it will let professionals express their

ideas, model making skills, and sustainability concepts in a creative forum. Architects are encouraged to include children in the design of the “gingerbread” house, in order to teach them

basic sustainability principles.

The builds will be constructed off-site and brought to the venue for judging. At the event, participants will be asked to fill out part of the “FEED” scorecard. Judges will walk around and

verify the points, as well as fill out the special section of the scorecard for the judge’s points. All guests can purchase raffle tickets to vote for the “crowd favorite” and the proceeds of these

tickets will go to charity.

Sample ‘FEED’ points:

Brownie Points- Bring in a covered dessert or food item for your table.

AIA Member- Be an AIA member.

Pantry Points- Build your entire build (including base) out of items you already own in your

pantry.

Made in the USA- All the build products are made in the USA.

Innovation of Design- Participants are asked to select up to three innovations they wish to

present for the jury to judge. Sample: reuse of a store-bought chocolate cake could be a

Brownfield credit.

Please visit the website- www.aians.org/dessertbuild for the most up-to-date information about

the event. If you are interested in participating, have any suggestions, or would like to help plan this event, please contact the AIANS Emerging Professional Chair- Jason Peist [email protected]

Rostrum 2012

Page 4

AIA Newark & Suburban

Links

Calendar

Follow us on :

DONATE-

NJAPAC

showcase projects that differ

in size and scope. The category for Un-Built

projects, both Residential and Non-Residential, is intended

for projects that: either have not yet been constructed;

ended after schematic design or design development, i.e

“Great Un-Built Work” that

every architect has done that never left the drawing board; or design competition entries done for other design

organizations, which will need to comply with Design Awards

board format and

regulations. The categories of Interiors

and/or Featured Element are intended for projects

that are essentially interior in nature or were primarily

for a featured element of the project, which could be

a single room like a kitchen

or bath, an architectural element such as a façade

renovation, or furniture. For

Design Awards 2012 The Design Awards

Committee is pleased to announce that the 2012 AIA

Newark and Suburban Design Awards will be held

Thursday evening, October 11 at the Hamilton and

Ward Steakhouse in Paterson.

Our Section’s 19th annual

Awards will be a special joint event held in

collaboration with the Architects League of

Northern New Jersey. Submitted projects from

both Sections will be juried together during the

afternoon of October 11

before the awards presentations in the

evening. For this special joint event,

we have invited the other AIA New Jersey Section

presidents to serve as jurors, and we are pleased

to announce that Bruce D.

Turner, AIA (South Jersey), Donna Terzano, AIA

(Central), Robert W. O’Reilly, AIA (West Jersey),

as well as Thomas Navin, AIA, a noted architect,

garden designer and currently an instructor at

NJIT and Columbia, have all

agreed to join us as jurors. Projects submitted for the

Design Awards are separated into the two main

categories of Residential and Non-Residential

projects. These are further divided into three sub-

categories: Built projects;

Un-Built projects; Interior and/or Featured Element.

While the majority of projects submitted each

year tend to fall into the Built category, the

categories for Un-Built work and Interiors/Featured Element projects offer

ample opportunity to

Continued on page 5

Rostrum 2012 Issue 7

Page 5

delicious food and drink in the company of your AIA

colleagues.

Contact Donald Chin AIA

Design Awards Chairperson [email protected] with

questions or comments.

I encourage all of our Section’s members to show

us the work you do and are most proud of. With July

here, the Design Awards

are three months away and now would be a good time

to start planning your boards. And please be sure

to mark down October 11 on your calendar for the

opportunity to see the work of our member firms while

enjoying live music and

Building Tour: Kykuit

other examples of featured elements as well as the

complete submission requirements for the

Design Awards, please visit

the Newark and Suburban web site and follow the

links: www.aians.org/NewsEvents/Design Awards/2012Board Submission Information.

10:00 am Tour #1 (23 guests) ends: 12:15pm.

10:15 am Tour #2 (23 guests) ends: 12:30pm.

12:45 pm G r o u p

lunch (included) PLEASE ADVISE IF VEGETARIAN.

1:45 pm Bus Pick-up.

2:00 pm Bus Departure

back to Fairfield, NJ.

2 CEUs will be given.

Max. number of guest is 46.

Sign up here:

http://aians.org/building-tour-2/

carr iages and classic automobiles. This tour is

wheelchair accessible. No strollers please.

Cost per person: $75

This is a joint tour with Architects League.

Schedule:

7:15 am Bus Pick-up at

Bergy-Hollywood Office Building, 376 Hollywood

Avenue, Fairfield, NJ. We

are leaving at 7:30 AM Sharp!

9:15 am Arrival at Sleepy Hollow, NY visitors center.

Tour Date: September 15, 2012

www.hudsonva l ley .o rg /historic-sites/kykuit

AIA-NS Sponsor is Turner

Construction!!

Please join us for a Tour of

Kykuit, the hilltop paradise that was home to four

g e n e r a t i o n s o f t h e R o c k e f e l l e r f a m i l y ,

b e g i n n i n g w i t h t h e philanthropist John D.

Rockefeller, founder of

Standard Oil. His business acumen made him, in his

day, the richest man in America. Now a historic site

of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, this

extraordinary landmark has been continuously and

meticulously maintained for

more than 100 years. The tour will include the main

floor of the house complete with its fine furnishings and

art; the subterranean art galleries; the Inner Garden

and West Terrace, with spectacular views of the

Hudson River and the

outdoor sculpture collection; and finally, the mammoth

Coach Barn with its col lect ion of antique

Continued from page 4 Design Awards